


Reunion and Apologies

by hazymoon



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: F/M, Shadowbringers / 5.0 Spoilers, i haven't written in 6 years, this is so incredibly self indulgent i'm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-09
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-10-13 07:47:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20578985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hazymoon/pseuds/hazymoon
Summary: He’d only ever seen her cry twice. The first time was when the doors to the Crystal Tower shut between them. The second was when he was shot. And now, there was a third.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> this is just an unbelievably self-indulgent fic of my WoL!OC and the crystal exarch. i tried to keep it vague beyond her gender so that others can just insert their own WoL/OC but her race/hairstyle pops up once or twice.

He’d only ever seen her cry twice. 

The first time was when the doors to the Crystal Tower shut between them. The once stoic Viera, who’d shown little-to-no emotion on her face beforehand, now had almost comically large tears streaming down her face. She’d made no noise, and stood in front of the others -- hiding them from all but him. Centuries had passed, and then many years more until he was able to start watching her through the mirror in the Ocular. He watches as her dear friend falls while protecting her, her face contorting in sadness and anger -- but never tears. He watches her study in all manners of combat, and those of self-sufficiency. He watches as she slays primal after primal, always in a role different from the last, until she seemed to settle in the comfort of magic based classes; white magic seemed to be her forte. He watches as she liberates both Ala Mhigo and the far eastern country of Doma, and smiles to himself as she is hailed a hero. She smiles, she frowns, she grits her teeth in anguish and anger, but she still does not cry.

When she arrives at the first, one of the first things to fall from her lips is his name -- a name long unmentioned. He reacts with what he hopes comes off as confusion; no, there is nobody here by that name. She frowns for a moment before they continue their tour of the Crystarium. Eventually, after long-winded explanations that were carefully schemed by Urianger and himself, she sets out for Fort Jobb. He accompanies her into Holminster Switch, and he stares in awe as the sky opens up to the beauty of night after the lightwarden is slain before his gaze returns to her -- bloody and bruised, but the faint hints of a smile dance upon her face. She continues to slay lightwardens in the areas surrounding the Norvrandt, before coming face to face with Vauthry, followed in succession by Emet-Selch. And he watches, with horror clouding his obfuscated face, as she begins to turn into a sin eater herself; the light was far too much. The next few moments seem to blur in his memory, as the last thing he remembers before he blacked out were tears once again falling from her eyes. Two times he had seen her cry, and both were for him. Had he stayed conscious any longer, he would swear he felt guilt pushing at his heart like a sharpened dagger.

He knows nothing of what happened between the battle at Mount Gulg and the battle at Amaurot. Though he summons heroes from other worlds to assist her in the final clash against Hades, he can do nothing else but watch as they duke it out. As the summoned heroes fade, he stands before the group of scions and apologizes. He apologizes as much as he can, barely able to look them -- look *her* in the eyes, and yet her face softens, with a smile that could light up even the darkest depths of an endless abyss. “’Tis good to see you awake, G’raha Tia.” The moment the words leave her lips, the tears spill from his eyes. No amount of wiping them away does any good, as they continue to fall. But yet he manages to speak, masking as much of the sobs as he can with a smile, albeit as difficult as it is. “’Tis good to be awake!”

A few suns pass as everyone recovers before they reconvene at the Ocular. Though his original plan had failed, he had not disappeared with the calamity stopped; which left every scion but her trapped on the First until they could find a way back to the Source without it resulting in his death. Each agreed and left with her a small message to give to someone back home -- Tataru, Cid, even one for Estinien, if she could find him. Soon, only she remained in the room with him. With heavy feet, he walked to the mirror and rested his hand on the rim, giving it the power he needed to return her. Masking his face with what he hoped looked like a smile, he turned to look at her -- to look her over in the flesh once more. “Could I trouble you to give word to Rammbroes and the others that I am okay? I would hate for them to worry any longer.” She hesitates for a moment -- or perhaps less -- before nodding, and steps towards the mirror. At this point, he has to look up to view only the profile of her face. Stoic, as it was all those years ago. But as she begins to step through, her face changes -- her eyebrows knit, she grits her teeth, and tears begin to pool at the corner of her eyes. He doesn’t seem them fall, though, as she’s quickly spun on her heel and lurched forward towards him, taking him in an embrace so tight it nearly knocked the air out of him; probably a good thing rather than bad, or he’d have turned into something resembling a tomatl if he’d noticed where his head was cushioned. Instead, he caught his breath before looking up to tears once again; the third time he’d seen it, only now he could feel them as they dropped onto his cheeks like raindrops.

“You can trouble me later! You expect me to simply go back, just like that?! Do you realize how long it’s been?” Each word comes with a torrent of emotion, and he lets her vent her frustration and sadness as he wraps his arms around her back; gently at first, as if testing the waters, before tightening his grip just a bit more. “When you said you wished to see Salina’s dream become reality, I trusted that you knew what you were doing. I trusted in you. And yet..” Her grip loosens, and he can feel her arms trembling as she takes in a deep, shaky breath. “I could not stop this accursed mind of mine from thinking you had resigned yourself to die, G’raha. I’d even attempted to break into the Tower to make sure your heart still beat.” She released him from her grasp, bringing her hands to her face so that she could wipe off the excess tears that plagued her cheeks. 

He grabbed her hands before they made it to their destination, and intertwined his crystal fingers with her own as he used his free hand to wipe them in her stead. Though he felt guilt at the core of his heart, his face betrayed it with a smile that could reach his eyes. “I apologize. I could sit here apologizing for centuries if you wished it, but if you are anything like you were back then, you would rather have it done in actions rather than words.” His thumb rolled small circles against her cheek, gazing up into her eyes; deep down, he wished with all of his being that he had been born much, much taller. “May I?”

She had barely been able to finish nod before his other hand made its way to her face, as if he hadn’t expected her to say no; he wouldn’t have been wrong, either. He gently pulled her face towards his own, hoping that she wouldn’t notice that he was on his tiptoes. Resting his forehead against her own, he spoke just barely above a whisper; “I’ve missed you.” Their lips brushed against each other, keeping it innocent enough until she decided that this simply wasn’t enough of an apology. Her lips parted, and her tongue traced along his lips. To say he wasn’t open to the idea would be a lie so unbelievable, even a toddler would be skeptical. Opening his mouth just enough for his tongue to slip out, he let it dance with hers before pushing past it, taking control in the kiss; this was his apology, and gods be damned if he didn’t show just how much he meant it.

While it might have been only thirty seconds or so, it felt like a lifetime between them. When they finally broke apart -- and he very gently returned to standing on soles, to not raise suspicion -- he couldn’t help but grin to himself. Her cheeks were flushed, and he was fairly sure he’d left her breathless with how hard she was breathing. The sight elicited a response from his core that he had to fight -- until she grabbed at the collar of his robe and leaned back down. “I want.. more. That “apology” wasn’t enough.”

He was ready to oblige her, right there on the floor of the Ocular, when a knock came from the door. She let go of his robes in a flurry, running her hand under her hair to readjust it over her shoulder as she normally wore it while taking on her usual stoic face -- as stoic as it could be, despite still being a tint of red. Hiding a smile behind his hand, he let it fade off before turning to the door, calling for whoever stood beyond it to come in. Stepping in was Lyna, who looked upon the other Viera with shock. “My apologies. I thought the Warrior of Darkness had departed already.”

The Exarch shook his head, a fabricated frown playing among his features. “It seems she has a few things that need to be attended to before she leaves. Her companions have already given their farewells, though.” He brought his hand to his mouth, feigning a moment of thought. “Should the others ask, simply tell them she has gone. It will allow her to travel freely, without interference.” Lyna nodded, before quickly relaying the message she had come to give. With a salute, she left the room, and G’raha turned to his companion, who was counting her blessings that he could think so quickly on his feet. “Perhaps we should continue... elsewhere. Would your room at the Pendants suffice?”

She gave a nod, a coy smile creeping onto her face. “That’s fine. But finish your exarch-ly duties first. I’ll be waiting.” Stepping over to him, she gave him one last kiss, gently biting his lower lip before breaking off and grinning at him. Now his cheeks were the ones that were flushed. With a wave, she stepped out of the Ocular, and when enough time had passed that he could guarantee she had left, she sunk down to the floor and put his forehead against his knees. “Blast those daily guard reports. I should have made them weekly.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> one name drop and a few race drops for this chapter. _(:3」∠)_

It had been a few bells before he was given freedom from his duties; the Crystarium guard needed new routes to patrol now that the influx of sin eaters had quelled, and the leaders of the Crystalline Mean needed advice on new projects they were looking in to. By time he had made his way to the Pendants, the sun was nearly set. He was grateful, though; it meant there’d be no interruptions. The thought of it made his tail flick on more than one occasion. As nobody outside of the Scions and Lyna knew of his appearance, he’d taken a brief detour to the markets to buy some more casual attire — there would likely be gossip if the Crystal Exarch were seen going to the Pendants and staying there overnight. To hide his crystal features as adequately as possible, he wore a high collared tunic and some gloves; to mask the bits that reached near the bridge of his nose, he had a scarf — it was night, after all, so nobody would question a little warmth against the chilly air.

When he arrived at the doors to her room, he gave it two firm knocks. But when they swung open, he took a step back; was this the wrong room? It looked nothing like it did when she first came here. Not only that, but nobody was actually at the door itself. He was about to apologize and walk off when an arm reached out from inside, from a blind spot just beyond the door’s frame. It latched on to his own before giving a firm tug, pulling him inside as the doors quickly whisked shut behind him and locked. His confusion at the room quickly slipped from his mind as his eyes focused on the person inside — or rather, the assets of the person inside before realizing he had to look up to see her face. She wore a sheer babydoll dress that parted at the center of her chest and quickly dipped behind her to drag along the floor. A pair of thigh highs were gartered to some lace smallclothes, and her face finished off her ensemble with a mischievous smile. “I thought perhaps glamouring the room to look something similar to my own back home would be a little nicer.” She began to unravel the scarf from his face, but at a dangerously languid pace. 

Unable to handle this torturous speed, he pulled the scarf from his mouth before placing his hands on either side of her face, pulling her closer to him with a firm-yet-gentle tug until their lips were just a hair’s width apart. “If you went through the trouble to glamour the entire room, we’ll just have to make use of the entire space, won’t we?” He took on a sly grin before smashing his lips against hers, leading her to the sofa that sat near a fireplace — one lit with a magical fire that gave the room the proper lighting and warmth, but with none of the hassle of maintaining a real blaze. At this moment, he was grateful for two things; the first being that because she had no heels on, the height disparity had made itself much less known. The second was that, even after what had been centuries and then some, he hadn’t lost any of the vim and vigor from his youth. He broke the kiss only to sit her down before leaning in for her neck, speaking between small love bites and her quiet noises of pleasure. “I can’t begin to express how long I’ve dreamed of this. Even before we’d adventured into the Tower.” 

Through half-lidded eyes, she turned her head slightly to face him, her hands grasping at his tunic in a frenzied attempt to rid him of the damn thing. When he complied and leaned back to pull it over his shoulders, she took it upon herself to palm at his crotch over his pants, eliciting a mix between a moan and a hiss as he gritted his teeth. “Thinking of that even before we’d properly gotten to know each other? How lecherous. Although..” She grinned as she worked at his pants, a few quick motions helping release his already hard member from its constraints. “I suppose we’d both be at fault, because it didn’t take long for me to think the same.” Giving his dick a few firm strokes, she slipped off the couch to the floor in front of him, leaning in close so that every breath made contact with his skin. Every motion, every wisp of air that so much as tickled him had him gasping; the teasing was torturous. Twisting his fingers into the base of her hair, he almost looked like he was going to cry as he gazed down at her. She couldn’t help but grin and she gave him one last stroke. “Impatient? Let’s see if I can make you sing.”

She started off slow, dragging her tongue up the underside of his cock and flicking it at the tip a few times before positioning her hand halfway down the shaft. With the other holding onto his thigh, she gave the tip a kiss before sliding it into her mouth, her hand moving with her until she couldn’t go any further. The groan that spilled from the exarch‘s lips was so deep it sounded gutteral, and his hands firmly latched onto her head instead of curling in her hair. If her mouth wasn’t full, she would have been grinning. Moving slowly in a steady motion, she had intended to make it as pleasurable as possible; it seemed he had other plans though, as he began to gently force her head back and forth a little faster, as if testing the water with her to see if it was already. He couldn’t ask, at any rate, because the only sounds coming from his mouth were breathless pants and moans. Settling herself so that she was sitting on her heels, she decided to indulge him in his haste, steadily picking up her pace. His noises of euphoria soon began to take the loose shapes of words, and she took it upon herself to go deeper than she had been; if he was feeling good, she wanted him to feel even better. Eventually his hands took more control, his hips bucking with each push and pull of her mouth. “Fuck.. I’m so close to... f-fuck, Vira..!”

His grip firmed and kept her head in place as he came, and the Viera continued to use his leg as a means to keep herself steady as she swallowed — or at least, swallowed what she could. As he finally came down from his high, he took a step back to regain himself before looking down at the beautiful mess before him. His cheeks flushed red when he saw her, cum nearly spilling from her lips as she finished downing what was already in her mouth; and they burned even hotter when her tongue peeked out to catch what she had missed. Despite his release, the sight of her made something at his core start to flare, but he’d be damned if he didn’t return the favor first. As she opened her mouth to speak, his lips crushed hers in a deep kiss, robbing her of anything she had even opened to say. Breaking apart after effectively stealing breath, he bent down to floor level to lift her, positioning her so that she was “sitting” on his torso, her legs wrapping around him for support. 

“Now it’s my turn.” were the only words said before he kissed her again, keeping his hold on her hips firm as he made his way to another part of the room. Initially, he’d planned to do this at the couch he had led her to, but she had taken control before he had the chance. He definitely wasn’t complaining, but he did say that they’d put every space of the room to use; and he wasn’t going to make himself out to be a liar. He stopped at a dresser in the middle of the room, sitting against a back wall. Towering over them was a large vanity mirror, bolted to the back of the dresser itself. Giving her a squeeze (which elicited quite an excited “oh!” from her), he placed her down just in front of it, bringing her head down for yet another kiss as one arm deftly swept the varied makeup containers and accessories that laid across the top to the side. With a mischievous smile, he spun her around and bent her forward slightly, forcing her to hold herself up as he spread her legs apart with his own foot. He leaned atop her, nipping at her neck as his hands deftly worked at the hooks that kept her lingerie in place, pulling it off her in one quick motion before returning his hands to her breasts, one giving gentle squeezes while the other idly toyed with her nipple. “Tell me, love. Have you touched yourself in front of a mirror?” Her attempt at replying was strained, as each word was interrupted by another of his ministrations. “N-no, I, ah.. just let my i-imagination do the, oh.. the work..” 

He grinned against her bare skin, slowly kissing and biting his way down her back, until he was just near her tailbone. “Make sure you watch yourself closely then.” Crouching down behind her, two fingers hooking themselves on the string of her smallclothes on either side of her hips, a strong pull snapping them entirely. Flinging the lace off with its counterpart from earlier, he gave her lower lips a small kiss before spreading them apart with his thumbs. He leaned forward, his tongue barely making contact with her as it flicked upward. Despite that, it elicited a hiss from the Viera. “You filthy tease..!” She said between gritted teeth. He chuckled, his thumbs gently massaging her as he spoke. “I’m just returning the favor from earlier.” She would have given a snarky reply if her voice hadn’t been drowned out by a shuddering moan; his tongue had made good friends with her clit before traveling upwards, seemingly engulfing all of her. Each flick of his tongue explored a new part of her, and it wasn’t long before her forearms could no longer support her. She used her elbows for support as he dug deeper, a finger occasionally plunging inside of her as he gave her clit some tender love and care. Her moans became much more frequent, alongside mewls and whines of pleasure. “G-G’raha stop, I’m—“ she couldn’t finish her sentence as another finger joined the one already inside her, the index finger of his free hand just barely teasing her clit in place of his tongue so he could speak. 

“Make sure you keep your eyes on the mirror.. keep it all locked away so that you’ll think of me any time you pass one.” He peered at her reflection from behind, making eye contact with her through the mirror. While he’d already started to get hard again from the noises she was making, her face brought his dick to full mast almost instantly; half-lidded eyes that struggled to stay open, but kept their gaze on the mirror like he said. Hair stuck to her forehead with sweat, and her fingers were attempting to dig themselves into the hard wood of the dresser as she got closer to climax. He returned to his original position, removing his two fingers from inside of her. A whine of disappointment very quickly became a moan of ecstasy as his tongue snaked back inside of her, violently swirling and thrusting as his finger rapidly rubbed around and on her clit. Moans turned to screams as she fought to keep herself steady, her legs shaking as she got closer. He wrapped her arms around her thighs to support her as she cried out his name, her back arching abd her legs giving out as she came. Though she did her best to watch the mirror, her eyes eventually closed as she rode out her climax, and collapsed backwards into his arms as her body stopped twitching. He gave her a loving kiss on the top of her head before laying his head on her shoulder, lifting her up to make his way towards the bed. “Good girl.”

Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he spun her around so that she was straddling him, and she wrapped one of her hands around his neck. “You’re quite skilled with your hands, and even more so with your tongue.” She pushed their lips together into a heated kiss, their tongues battling for dominance as her free hand reached down to stroke his length. He grinned against her mouth just before they broke apart, pressing his forehead against hers. “I suppose I had some training in my younger years, but it’s good to know I’ve kept it after such a long nap.” He kissed her again before making his way towards her jaw and neck, peppering her with love bites as she continued to caress his cock. She stood on her knees to position herself above her, lining his tip up with her entrance. The words “I love you, G’raha Tia.” slipped from her mouth as she lowered herself onto him, shuddering as she reached the hilt. She started slow, like before, each movement causing waves of pleasure to ripple through to her core. His mouth made contact with her breast, his tongue swirling around her nipple as he began to buck his hips to match her movements. Breathless gasps and mewls of pleasure spilled from her lips as the pace increased, even more so when he took her nipple between his teeth and pulled, before digging his fingers into her hips to support her as moved their position. He laid her down on the bed before taking full control of their motions, placing one hand next to her head to hold himself up as he leaned forward to kiss her neck and collarbone. The thrusts became desperate and needy as he felt his core start to tickle with that oh-so-wonderful feeling, and he moved his head so that he hovered just inches from her face.

“I love you, too. Nothing could have stopped me from saving you, not even time and space themselves.” He pushed the hair from her face with his hand, their smiles serving as a sign that no more words were needed. They kissed once more, neither wanting to break as they both came close to release. It was only when air was absolutely needed that they split, the air between them filled with moans of each other’s names and cries of pleasure. She mewled out his name as she came, and it didn’t take long for him to follow; his teeth leaving a deep indent in her shoulder as he filled her. Collapsing beside her as he pulled out, the Viera weakly lifted her arm to wiggle her hand and snap her fingers, causing all the lights in the room to turn off, leaving the fireplace on the other side as the only source of illumination.

Positioning herself to lay on his chest, she idly traced her finger along the crystal that had grown over the right side of it. “I know I cannot stay here for too long; the others will soon learn I haven’t left yet. But..” She moved her hand to his jaw, cupping it. “When all is said and done, and I am no longer needed to be Hydelaen’s champion, I would not mind staying on the First with you.” His lips curled into a gentle smile, and he ran his hand through her hair, billowing it out along her back. “I would enjoy that. More than you can ever imagine.” He let his hand rest along the back of her head, closing his eyes to imagine it for only a second — until pain seemed to erupt from his left shoulder. Eyes bolting open, he turned his head to see a deep bite mark, and a smug looking Viera.

“Now we’re truly even.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i have never written smut before. i really stepped out of my comfort zone for this, so i’m not entirely sure if it’s any good or not. _(:3」∠)_

**Author's Note:**

> this was supposed to be a oneshot but i think splitting it into two chapters is probably better, because i don't think i could write any more right now. the next chapter will be where the explicit rating comes in and will probably be fairly short because i have never written any smut in my life. i joined ffxiv when syrcus tower was current content, so g'raha has a special place in my heart because he was the first non-MSQ character i really adored.
> 
> that being said, i haven't written since 2013/2014 so constructive criticism (or just any kind of comment in general because i crave validation) is highly welcomed.


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